𝑃𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑜𝑛 / 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑛𝑔

S3 ch 84

The room felt cold. Quiet, except for the ticking of the clock. Jiwon hadn't said a word all day. Hood up, eyes shadowed. His face sunken, lips pale. He hadn't eaten, moved, or even looked at Rafayel.

Rafayel, standing nearby, tried to keep his voice steady.
Rafayel:
"Ji, come on. Shower, just real quick. You'll feel a little better."

Jiwon:
(flatly)
"Leave me alone."

Rafayel:
"Babe-"

Jiwon:
(louder)
"I said f*cking leave me alone, Rafayel!"

That hit like a punch. Rafayel stood still, blinking. He didn't even flinch, just took a deep breath.

Rafayel:
"You haven't moved in two days. You're not eating, you're barely sleeping-what do you want me to do? Just watch you waste away?"

Jiwon:
(shouting)
"You don't have to do anything! I never asked you to take care of me!"

Rafayel:
(voice tightening)
"You didn't have to. I want to, Ji."

Jiwon:
(scoffs)
"No, you don't. You're stuck with me. Just admit it. You're tired of babysitting a broken freak."

That shattered something in Rafayel. He looked away for a second, swallowing the sharp pain behind his eyes.

Rafayel:
(softly)
"Don't talk about yourself like that."

Jiwon:
"Why not? It's the truth, isn't it?"

There was silence. The weight between them unbearable. Rafayel finally backed away.

Rafayel:
"I'm gonna step outside."

Jiwon:
"Good."

------

Rafayel lit his cigarette with a shaky hand. He stared down at the city, chest rising and falling unevenly.

He was exhausted. Angry. Not at Jiwon. At the helplessness. At the way this illness turned Jiwon into someone else. Someone who kept clawing at everyone who loved him, just to make sure they stayed.

He whispered under his breath,
Rafayel:
"Please don't do anything dumb while I'm out here..."

Jiwon sat frozen on the floor now, back against the bathroom wall. The yelling, the guilt, the silence - it all exploded inside him. His ears rang.

"You don't deserve him."

"You ruin everything."

He scrambled through the cabinet - nothing. Rafayel had hidden every sharp object. His breath quickened. Chest tightening.

Desperate, he found an old shaving razor head deep in the drawer. Broken, dull. But it didn't matter.

The pain calmed the chaos. Briefly.

He sat against the tub, shaking. The blood smeared across his thighs, not deep, but raw and aching.

Jiwon (whispers):
"Why am I like this... why can't I stop..."

Ten minutes later, Rafayel came back in.

"Ji?" he called cautiously, setting the cigarette down.

No answer.

"Jiwon?"

Then silence.

He rushed to the bathroom. The door wasn't locked, but half-shut. He pushed it open.

Then froze.

Blood on the towel rack. On Jiwon's hands.

Rafayel:
"Jesus, Ji-"